Pains of the Heart
by WarriorCatstheRPG
Summary: AU/OC's only! Two Thunderclan cats meet and from hereon who knows what's in store for them? Written collaboratively as part of a larger series. For more on our series and other stories listed please see our profile. More to come!


_Author's Notes: _

This is NOT a standalone story; it is a collaboratively written story originating from our RPG, written out in posts made on our game to create a giant collaborative story. The authors featured in this particular story are:

_Rhaynefur: _A newer member of our game who's already writing some great stuff! She writes for Iceshadow.

_Hawkfur: _Long time member who has graced our writing community with lots of goodies. She writes for Hoodwink.

This is and AU series taking place long after the book characters have been forgotten, and branching off of the first series so most things seen in the series after these books will not be seen here although fan tribes and similarly names alternative Clans will feature prominently. This series features ONLY original characters!

Now, on with the story! This story features two Thunderclan cats who meet and from there, who knows?

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Iceshadow lay next to the stream gazing into the water. _Oh Starclan, Why am so alone? _The pale gray tabby sighed and continued to gaze into the water.

A scarred tuxedo furred tom had slipped out of camp unnoticed. His torn ears pricked for the slightest sound, his paws trotted along the leaf covered ground. The lovely autumn scent was in the air, and nature was preparing for its festivities. The leaves were changing color, the squirres were gathering their acorns, the birds were using their singing pipes more often, and the mice were starting to burrow underground more often.

The crickets chirping in the early fall air was soothing music to Hoodwink's ripped ears. With his good eye, he watched a pair of birds dance in the air about the branches of the tall, Thunderclan trees. Everything seemed to be in sync, just as it always had been.

Then something pierced the melody.

It wasn't a sound, it was the lack of sound... Too quiet near the small stream that Hoodwink had been running toward. That wasn't his destination per say, since Hoodwink hated seeing his reflection. It was too unnaturally quiet at the stream. Souldn't there be some sort of prey animal taking a drink? But still Hoodwink was accompanied by silence. Hiding behind a bush, he then finally picked up something with his radar-like ears. Breathing.

Inhaling the air, Hoodwink's nose filled with the scent of Thunderclan. Pressing his body through the bush, he ignored the burs that practically attacked his fur. Tearing at his black and white fur, Hoodwink narrowed both of his eyes. Even if he could only see out of his right eye, Hoodwink could plainly see it was Iceshadow. What was wrong? He would find out.

"Iceshadow? 'That you?" he asked, pretending to sound like he was supposed to- half defenseless because of one lame eye. But Hoodwink was just like any other warrior once someone got passed his scars. Aside from the face that the whole left half of his face was torn raw, along with his ears and front torso, along with four claw marks down his back, Hoodwink was a nice guy with a good sense of humor. But still, he awaited for Iceshadow's scream of horror at the sight of him... just like everyone else.

Iceshadow looked up when she heard her name. "Hi, Hoodwink." she said. Her icy blue eyes gazed back down into the water.

"How are you?"

Hoodwink furrowed his eyebrows. Something was wrong. "Same as always- nothing." It was true, most of the time Hoodwink felt numb, his heart shrouded with oblivion and bleak darkness.

He cautiously stepped closer to her, hesitating and moving slowly with every step. "What about you? You don't look too good." Actually, she looked like a monster ran over her kitten...

"I'm fine." Just lonely. She added in her head. She sat up and looked at Hoodwink. Scarred as he was, he wasn't hideous as some people thought.

Hoodwink shrugged, dropping the subject. It didn't look like Iceshadow was willing to talk about whatever problem she had- if there was one to begin with. His good eye twitched when he saw that Iceshadow was staring at his scars. He looked at his black and white paws, immeidately going from concerned to self concious. "Um, I'd appreciate it if you wouldn't stare..." he murmured softly.

It bothered him when people stared at his awful wounds; mainly because it wasn't his fault he had them in the first place. Actually, if he hadn't snuck out of camp that one night. Great Starclan, of all the nights he could have snuck out it had to be the night a dog was in the territory!

_I should be grateful I'm alive,_ Hoodwink thought, _But living with the shame and the loneliness... Wouldn't death be more preferable?_

"Hm? Oh sorry..." Her voice trailed off, along with her gaze. She hadn't meant to stare. "Does it ever bother you? Being alone, I mean.... What a stupid question, she thought to herself.

Hoodwink shrugged, his cold, grey eyes transfixed on his paws, "You get used to it after awhile." He glared at the ground. Stupid ground. "It's hard to avoid the apprentice den and nursery, though," he added bitterly. So many sacrifices he had made, as if the ugly appearance wasn't enough. It was a life sentence, being alone.

"It's like being in a dark void," he rambled, "An empty and lonely place where nothing good comes out. Just suffering, I guess." He locked his grey orbs with her crystaline blue, "Why do you ask? It's not every day someone talks to me, after all- much less ask my opinion on anything."

Iceshadow shrugged. "I guess I'm not as quick to judge as some people are." She said returning his gaze. "Besides, no one should have to suffer like that."

Hoodwink couldn't help but feel taken aback by her words. His intimidating gaze softened. No one had ever said that to him. All he ever usually heard was an angst gasp or a horrified shriek from a kit...

"So- so you understand?" he stammered meekly. To be honest, he didn't know what else to say. Of all things, he had never expected this.

And Hoodwink believed every word.

Iceshadow nodded. "Sucks, doesn't it? People just ignoring you leaving you out..." then she added with a hint of humor to her voice "Or in your case people see you and runaway screaming into the night.". She stared into his gray orbs. Or, at least, the good one. Why were people so scared of him? It not like he was some monster just because of the way he looked. If you can't get past the way people look, then you never know the real person. But if you can... you just might find a real friend.

Hoodwink smirked, a joker, eh? Well, that was right up his dark alley! "Yeah, since we cats can see much better in the dark, and I thought I was ugly in the day!"

He sighed, locking eyes with her once again. "Yeah, you'd be surprised how one person could affect another's life by just talking to him... The pains of the heart strike deep, huh?

"Speaking of lonliness... what were you doing here all by yourself? It's not a good idea to roam the territory alone." Of coarse, Hoodwink wouldn't have had to worry about that. He had been ready to end this mess once and for all. It was a good thing he didn't. If he had gotten hit by a monster on the Thunderpath like how he wanted too, he wouldn't have properly met Iceshadow...

Iceshadow shrugged "The stream is where I usually go to get away. It's always so quiet here you almost forget life and all the crap that goes with it.". She sighed. "Guess I was just waiting for some one to find me... To be quite honest I don't think I had any intention of going back."

Hoodwink painfully looked at the stream, his frowning back. Wincing, he had forgotten what he had even looked like. He remembered his black and white fur, and his blind left eye, but that was about it. It was like being caught in a trap, he couldn't look away. He had grey eyes? Or at least, one of them. The other one was milky white and sightless.

"What do you mean, 'you have no intention on going back'?" he asked, even though Hoodwink knew the answer.

"Running away." Icehsadow gazed at her reflection in the water. "But then you came along and made me realize that I'm not the only one that's alone."

"I was planning on doing something similar, actually," Hoodwink confided, "But it was something a little more... permanent." With great energy, he managed to pry his horrified stare from his reflection, and softened his look once again when he looked at Iceshadow. It was a desperate expression, filled with loss and sorrow, explaining that he just wanted the torture to end.

Iceshadow looked at Hoodwink, she understood the look on his face. "But it doesn't look like we're as alone as we thought, does it?"

Hoodwink shook his mauled head. Even after a few moons, he was still missing patches of fur here and there. It had only just started to grow back, much to his annoyance. This was just one of the many downsides to making such an awful mistake. "Hey, why don't we head back to camp? I don't know about you, but I'm starved."

_grrr... _Iceshadow realized how hungry she was. "Yeah I haven't eaten since I woke up." She leaped to her paws.

Hoodwink smiled a crooked cheshire smile, the first time he had truely felt anything close to happiness in awhile. It felt good. Finally, Hoodwink felt a good feeling in his gut. Was it acceptance, or just pure bliss? He didn't care.

Sitting up, he walked slowly toward camp. Regardless of his overjoy of having something close to a friend that understood, he couldn't forget his God-awful reflection. It wore a horrible glare. Was that the animal that he had become, or would become? _I'll never be that beast_, he thought, _Me and Iceshadow... Something tells me we're all we've got for company. I don't know if it'll stay that way, but I gotta stick around if she needs me... if she does._


End file.
